Water adsorption on hydrogenated Si(1 1 1) surfaces

The adsorption of water on the hydrogen terminated Si(1 1 1) surface is studied by means of first-principles calculations as well as contact angle measurements. Possible initial adsorption configurations for single water molecules and the potential energy surface are calculated. Only small adsorption energies of the order of meV are predicted. Calculations for higher coverage show that the water–water interactions are stronger than the water–surface bonding. The contact angle formed between a water droplet on the surface approximated from the total-energy calculations amounts to 88°, while our measured value is 91°.